Allow me to belatedly introduce one of our new fall/winter yarns, one that had the misfortune of arriving at a particularly busy moment, and whose blog post was put off for far too long. We’re happy to announce that we now carry DK weight Bluefaced Leicester wools from West Yorkshire Spinners!
West Yorkshire Spinners is a yarn company in the UK, and like Baa Ram Ewe, their focus is on producing high quality yarns from British wool, and revitalizing the textile industry in their home of Yorkshire.
Above is their Fleece Bluefaced Leicester DK, undyed 100 gram hanks of smooth, soft wool. It comes in three natural shades, reminiscent, of course, of the sheep themselves. Each skein has 244 yards, enough for a hat, cowl, or pair of mitts. Two skeins will make a nice shawl – consider “Parkin.”
WYS also makes a dyed version of this wool, the simply-named Bluefaced Leicester DK. It comes in 50 gram balls with 122 yards, and my first thought on seeing them was that they ought to be paired with a contrasting shade of Fleece Bluefaced Leicester DK for some colorwork or stripes.
A “Fancy Hen” was where I started brainstorming, having loved the one I knit for my niece and the one Anne knit for her granddaughter. Pick two or three colors between the dyed and the undyed Bluefaced Leicester DK yarns and try one of the following:
- “Epistropheid,” colorwork hat by Kate Davies
- “Gimmers,” sheepy colorwork mitts by Ann Kingstone
- “Duotone Cowl,” striped cowl by Orange Flower Yarn
- “The Easy Ombre Slouch Hat,” by Paul S Neary
- “Clayoquot Toque,” colorwork hat by tincanknits
Look for these WYS in the DK weight section here at the shop. See you there!